When American author Rosemary Colgrove was writing her book 'Eye On The Sparrow' and quoted Mark Twin’s statement on India that India is, the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grandmother of tradition, she would definitely not have thought that India is also the country of women power and feminine leadership. Time magazine, after the bravery attempt of Wendi Deng has listed ‘Jhansi ki Rani’ under their list of ‘Top 10 Bad-Ass Wives’.
This list is said to be inspired by Wendi Deng for her brave attempt to save her husband media mogul Mr. Rupert Murdoch. Murdoch was attacked by a comedian during a questioning round inside the British Parliament. Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of America’s ex-president Franklin Delano Roosevelt is ranked number one in the Times list. Laxmibai is on number 8 where as Sarah Palin ranks 5th in the list.
Here is the list of ‘Top 10 Bad-Ass Wives’ with the order the magazine listed:
1- Eleanor Roosevelt- According to Time Magazine, "It could be said that former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt's strength was born out of her husband's weaknesses: first, after she discovered an extra-marital affair early in their marriage, she resolved to live on her own terms — not merely as an accessory to her powerful husband."
2- Queen Isabella of Spain- about this queen Time says: “Under her watch, Spain drove out the last Muslim kingdoms on the Iberian peninsula, cowed Portugal and launched Christopher Columbus to the New World. The galleons of gold and silver that streamed back to Spain in decades to come were all due to Isabella's foresight.”
3- June Carter Cash- Time quoted Rosanne Cash saying, "If being a wife were a corporation, June would have been a CEO." A country music star as a child, Carter Cash rose to the pinnacle of country music stardom when she joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1950, says Time. Writing on how she met with her husband Johnny Cash Time further says, "There she met her future husband, musician and consummate rake Johnny Cash. It was not until 1968, however, that the pair married; before then, Carter Cash was married twice, won a Grammy (with Cash) and then somehow managed to tame the notorious drug addict and womanizer." As the co-writer of "Ring of Fire," one of Cash's biggest hits JUne Carter Cash hits the Time list of 'Top 10 Bad-Ass Wives’ at number 3.
4- Egyptian Queen Cleopatra- According to Time, "The Egyptian Queen Cleopatra is remembered for the luxuries of her fabled kingdom, her dazzling beauty and, above all, her death. Immortalized by Shakespeare, her alleged suicide was the stuff of romantic legend — despairing after the defeat in battle of her lover, Marc Antony, she succumbed to the venomous bite of an asp rather than be taken captive by the victorious Roman Octavian, nephew of Julius Caesar, another one of her many paramours."
5- Sarah Palin- Palin who is at number 5, according to Time is not only a "Sexy Sarah" a name by which she is known in some circles, but is a gun-toting and isn't afraid to muck up her perfectly coiffed hair. "Wife to oil worker, fisherman and Iron Dog champion Todd Palin, "Sarah Barracuda," as she was nicknamed in high school, has no qualms about letting her competitive, sporty nature outshine that of her husband", time says.
6- Ellen de Generes and Portia de Rossi Ellen- According to Time, Ellen has earned the reputation of being the most popular daytime talk show host, having won four hosting Emmy Awards and five Emmys for Outstanding Talk Show. She has danced her way into America's heart and even parlayed her popularity into a (short-lived) gig as a judge on American Idol.
7- Michelle Obama- Time writes, "One thing is for sure if someone hurled a pie at President Obama, it would never get past Michelle."
8- The Rani of Jhansi- This indian female supermodel was born into a well-established, noble family in 19th century western India. She became queen and took risposibility to look after her kingdom.Time writes on how she battled against British Army at her age of 22 and list her number 8 among 'Top 10 Bad-Ass Wives' ever born on the earth.
9. Melinda Gates- According to Time, "Her husband founded Microsoft, changed the way we think about computers and is a billionaire more than 50 times over, but Melinda Gates is anything but a sidekick. She earned degrees in computer science and economics at Duke and an MBA from Duke's Fuqua School of Business, helped develop Microsoft's Publisher, Encarta and Expedia Programs and, as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the largest private foundation in the world, has taken on causes as varied as global health, agriculture development and education."
10- Elin Nordegren- Time writes, "When reports surfaced that Tiger Woods was involved in a bizarre early morning car accident, stories about Elin Nordegren wielding a golf club, chasing Tiger around their Windemere, Fla., mansion and even bashing in his SUV's windows were everywhere." and writes it, "That's pretty bad-ass". Though Time is not sure if that really happened.
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